This application relates generally to the disinfection or sterilization of catheters, tubes, and connectors and more particularly to disinfection or sterilization of catheters, tubes and connectors used in dialysis, and more particularly, to peritoneal dialysis. Peritoneal dialysis (PD) is a treatment for chronic kidney disease (CKD), a condition in which the kidneys fail to remove waste and excess water from the bloodstream. In PD, a dialysis solution enters the abdomen through an access site. After a few hours, the fluid becomes saturated with waste and is eventually drained through a catheter. There are two types of PD. Under continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD), patients change fluid four times a day. Continuous cycling peritoneal dialysis (CCPD), on the other hand, occurs at night through a machine that drains and refills the abdomen automatically. Unlike most hemodialysis (HD) patients, PD patients perform dialysis themselves. The protocol for sterilization procedures for PD patients involves multiple steps and is highly susceptible to imperfection and to bacterial contamination at every step. Peritonitis infection are the leading cause for a PD patient to transfer to HD. The incidence of peritonitis is 0.27 episodes/patient year for CAPD patients, and 1.48/patient year for CCPD patients. The main bacterium that causes this peritonitis is Staphylococcus aureus, which is part of the normal flora of the skin. Treatment for peritonitis includes long-term antibiotic treatment that causes multiple side effects and does not always eradicate the infection.
However, PD has several advantages over hemodialysis including mobility, fewer dietary restrictions, less cardiovascular stress and better blood pressure. Its disadvantages are peritonitis, increased risk of back pain, loss of protein, and lower survival rates than HD after diagnosis of cardiovascular disease.
Applicant of the subject application determines that new devices and methods for preventing or reducing infections in dialysis would be desirable.